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Wallace Briggs 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Now in my late seventies, I have come to self-publishing on Amazon rather late in life.
The flagship of my writing is a series of children’s MG/YA fantasy adventure stories and I am about to release the fourth in a series of stand-alone adventures of Jimmy Crikey.
In print are two short stories and another fantasy adventure. In addition, I have one finished memoir (Consorting with the Enemy) (needs editing) and another ‘in process’ is a YA fantasy in a medeaeval setting.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Adventures of Jimmy Crikey in Parallel Worlds is the last book published and Jimmy Crikey’s Adventures: The Emerald Lake is a few short weeks from publication.
The inspiration arose from necessity about fifty years ago while on a family seaside holiday. A series of short afternoon showers brought my five year old son and his four new friends, scurrying for shelter in our beach tent. The noise levels were almost unbearable. My wife insisted, ‘read them a story, or something’. I hadn’t brought any story books down to the beach so I had to make one up, on the spot. I had earlier noticed that in this group of children was a redhead who was also the smallest. He was being made to do the carrying and fetching for the bigger boys. Which he did willingly, to fit in. That boy became the hero of my story: a red headed boy who was bullied because he looked different. Jimmy Crikey has the disadvantage that he was born with large feet, but he overcomes the bullying and his true hero self shines through. He goes on to overcome every obstacle that arises in his path often saving his friends into the bargain. Any story for youngsters needs an element of magic, and so the four witch guardians were created along with Lord Oron. the Weatherman, who had a tendency to fall asleep at the controls

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I am sure I am not the only author who just picks up his pen, figuratively, and just writes. Mostly the words flow and on the rare occasion of writers’ block, I try not to ‘get in a sweat’.
I give up for an hour or so, or even a day or so, and turn to some other activity. Usually a session on my Hammond Organ. I enjoy the noise and don’t worry too much about what other people think.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Without a doubt the originators of the Bible, Old and New Testaments.
Thereafter Enid Blighton in particular The Magic Faraway Tree.
Latterly I have devoured Wilbur Smith’s almost everything he wrote from When the Lion Feeds. Baldacci is in the same class. And then a plethora which includes J Patterson for light holiday reads. I read around a book per week or two. My wife Pat sometimes hits a book a day but more usually a book every two days,

What are you working on now?
Completion of the fourth Jimmy Crikey adventure: editing and rewriting where my Editor has made suggestions.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Face Book is my primary promotion site, followed by Book Goodies, Book Bub, All Author

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Develop a thick skin for the inevitable rejects and negative vibes.
If you have story to tell keep writing until it’s down on paper, then edit and rewrite and start again.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Your family and friends are not your best critics,

What are you reading now?
J Patterson – 21st Birthday

What’s next for you as a writer?
Complete one of two projects: my memoir or a YA fantasy adventure. All subject to God being willing.
My first JimmyCrikey is available as a complete audio version but there are minor technical issues to be resolved before ACX will accpet the files. Unfortunately the original producer is unable to tidy up because of health issues. Further audio specialist assistance is too expensive at this stage.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Bible, Gibbon Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire, Lord of the Rings

Author Websites and Profiles
Wallace Briggs Website
Wallace Briggs Amazon Profile

Wallace Briggs’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile

Bentley Turner 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I was born in Kentucky, but I have lived in Tennessee for decades. I started writing fiction when I was in high school. However, my first short stories were not published until I was an undergraduate in college. Since then I have written THE FILE ON THOMAS MARKS, a mystery that was published in 2021, and THE PRIZE WINNERS AND OTHER STORIES, which was just published by the Global Publishing Group. Another mystery, A KILLING IN OKLAHOMA, should be published later this year.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
THE PRIZE WINNERS AND OTHER STORIES is my latest book. A collection, the stories were inspired by my experiences and, of course, my imagination. Several of the stories were discussed by groups of others before they were included in the collection. Other stories were written much later.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I try to write or work on what I’ve written several hours every day. Of course, I don’t believe this is unusual.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I’ve been reading others for decades, so this is difficult to answer. However, I have enjoyed reading James M. Cain, Ernest Hemingway, John O’Hara, John D. MacDonald, Linwood Barclay, John Grisham, Sidney Sheldon, and numerous others.

What are you working on now?
The first page proofs of A KILLING IN OKLAHOMA.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I try to employ several websites, not just one or two. I also approach reviewers. In some instances, I contact editors of newspapers and magazines, not to mention librarians who work at public libraries.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
If you are serious, read as much as you can. If you write mysteries, read mysteries. If you write sci-fi, read sci-fi. Try to read the so-called masters in addition to the writers writing today. And notice the differences between them. If possible, take one or more courses in creative writing at a college or university. You’ll be surprised what your classmates will say about your writing.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
If you are serious about becoming a writer, try to get published. If your work is rejected, keep submitting it. In other words, don’t give up.

What are you reading now?
Five or six books. Two or three are collections of short stories by a single author. The other books are nonfiction.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I am writing a book of nonfiction for an academic publisher.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Bible, Youngblood Hawke, From the Terrace, and Double Indemnity.

Author Websites and Profiles
Bentley Turner Amazon Profile
Bentley Turner Author Profile on Smashwords

Bentley Turner’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile

RC Cameron 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
This month, my fourth book is coming out. I have written two in French, and two in English. I’m a Canadian snowbird, so when in Canada I write for that market. When in South Florida, I have a different persona. The books are not translations, they are all originals. Since I was raised in a bilingual environment, that’s the way I write also.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is called BEHIND THE MASK. It’s the continuing life of my protagonist, Jason Tanner, a private investigator living on his small but comfortable yacht on the Intracoastal waterway.
The inspiration came from the last US election, during and after, where so many lies were told by politicians. It’s somewhat of a struggle between an honest county administration employee and a crooked politician.
Jason Tanner is dragged into the political world where he must discover the truth.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
It may not be unusual for writers, but I write every day between 9 am and noon. I’ll walk around the neighborhood in the afternoon. I’ll do a bit of editing between 5 and 6 pm with a cocktail. It doesn’t sound unusual to me.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
As a youngster, I read a lot of Sherlock Holmes and Hercule Poirot stories. I’m pretty certain I read ALL of the Poirot stories. I still watch some stories on TV. Later in life, I liked the books of Louise Penny and her Inspector Gamache protagonist. You can probably see a theme now. I like smart people who often win over the crooks.
More recently, while a take my daily walks, I’ve fallen in love with Audiobooks and my favorite authors are Michael Connelly and John Grisham. I don’t mind listening to a story today that I may have read ten or twenty years ago.

What are you working on now?
I’ll be writing the third novel of inspector Vaillancourt in Montreal. This time, we’ll see him at the beginning of his detective career in the early 1980s. It will be a new challenge for me as I normally write in the present. Going back some forty years, I’ll have to make certain the names of streets, of buildings, are correct. Today, I detective opens his flip phone and speed dials his superior. Back then, he’ll have to stop the car, find a phone booth and dial the office. It will be fun.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’ve used Facebook, Bookbub, Amazon, and my own website to promote my books with varying success. Friends, family, former colleagues are quite supportive of my writing. It’s amazing how a free ebook can entice someone to get it, but not at $0.99

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I’ve worked in Information Technology most of my life so I appreciate the support writing applications can provide. I would recommend using a writing application instead of the more popular Word program. The writing app will allow new authors to centralize their material, document the characters and places found in the manuscript, and make automatic backups. You don’t want to write 1,000 words only to discover it disappeared.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
You are never too old to learn something new.

What are you reading now?
I’ve just finished Bad Blood by John Carreyrou, a true story still in the news. I’ve started the latest book by Louise Penny. And I’m listening to a Michael Connelly story.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m just starting in this career, so there are lots of things I don’t know. But I want to learn, and I attend some presentations on tools and techniques of the craft. I need to get better at timing, building up the story to a satisfying climax.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The large ones. Stephen King, Dan Brown, James Patterson, that kind of authors.

Author Websites and Profiles
RC Cameron Website

RC Cameron’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile

Kathy Gaudry 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have been writing and editing, working both freelance and for book publishers, for decades. In the early 1990s, I founded Tamarack Books, Inc., and we traditionally published nonfiction Americana. After a huge number of requests, I also founded Towanda, Inc., a book production company for self-publishers. After selling my companies about 15 years ago, I retired, got bored, and started writing again, first blogs for my websites, next 2 books teaching self-editing to writers (for I have been going crazy reading self-published books that need editing!), and Training Your Puppy with Love along with a working journal to supplement it.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Editing Fiction, Detect and Correct

My first self-editing book dealt with nonfiction writing, but I had requests from fiction writers to do the same for them. It is a basic manual primarily for a beginning author (but experienced authors can benefit too) to teach him/her how to self-edit manuscripts before he/she publishes or sends it to a professional editor.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
When I am starting a project, I usually outline it first. Then I walk around for days, creating paragraphs in my head of what and how I want to explain things. I go back to the outline constantly, revising and filling in the blanks.

I also spend a huge amount of time researching the topic and have pages of notes before I begin the actual writing.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Over a lifetime, there have been so many. Alistair Cooke and Kenneth Clark with their mega-history volumes, Dorothy Gilman with her cozies, The Brontes, Mark Twain, Dickens, Harper Lee–there are so many. My tastes are eclectic so I read classics and mysteries, literary fiction and best sellers. I just like any well-written book that can hold my attention.

What are you working on now?
I have three projects going:
1. an online class for Training Your Puppy with Love (with a collaborator)
2. an online class for self-editing nonfiction
3. an online class for self-editing fiction
This is a bit of a change for me, doing online. I have always been in the classroom and on zoom before this. New challenges are good.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
My best method of selling books is to constantly “be stirring the pot.” I do like using the newsletters for promoting my books, for that is also the way I discover new authors. I look forward to working with Awesome Gang on promotions.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t talk about your book/topic to everyone in the world. I know you are excited, but all of that energy spent talking is energy you are not going to put into writing your book. If an author talks constantly about their book, they tend not to get it written. Be judicious when talking about your book. Better yet, don’t talk. Write!

There is another facet to this: if you have a good idea, someone else probably has that same idea. So, get your work out there before they do!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The book is done! In other words, know when to stop writing.

What are you reading now?
The Life and Crimes of Agatha Christie by Osborne

What’s next for you as a writer?
I have another four nonfiction books that I would like to write, but that is going to take me another couple of years–at least.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Boy, that is hard. There are so many I would like to have, read, and reread.
Bible – because of all of the good stories and thoughts
Complete Collection of Shakespeare – that will keep me going for a while, plus I can memorize the sonnets and great lines.
Blank journal with pen – to write down my thoughts as I live on the island.
(Can’t I take a few more???)

Author Websites and Profiles
Kathy Gaudry Website
Kathy Gaudry Amazon Profile

Kathy Gaudry’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Sharon Eshmade 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a writer, parenting coach, and counsellor. ‘Crash Test Mummy’ is the first book I have written.

I initially trained to be a primary school teacher in South Africa before completing my postgraduate diploma in dyslexia and literacy in the UK. Soon after marrying, I moved with my husband to the United Arab Emirates, where we still live today with our two sons.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
‘Crash Test Mummy’ is all about how I went out of my comfort zone and realised that we don’t have to be so extreme in our parenting views or follow any one way to raise our children confidently. I sat in the centre of all the different parenting styles, tested their validity, and listened to my gut to determine that what worked was a balanced, communication-based approach to raising my children.

Following my successful twenty-year career in special needs teaching, working with vulnerable children and adults, including working with my challenging children and being one myself; in late 2019 I felt as if something was amiss.

My older son’s behaviour has always been challenging but, I believed, that by strictly enforcing behaviour modification techniques to control his conduct, he would find his teenage years easier. As the opposite began to quickly unfold, I was inspired by my son, who struggles with Oppositional Defiance Disorder (ODD), to question my traditional parenting style and make significant and positive changes.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I am blessed to write each day while my children are at school. Understandably, lockdown and online schooling were detrimental to my writing process and mental health in general, but the stress and pressure of those months challenged my positive parenting to the extreme. Through that process, I am now parenting my challenging children with confidence!

After a conflict with my kids, I open the note application on my phone and jot down my thinking, feelings, and especially what I have learned. These experiences inspire my daily social media posts. Often, by questioning my traditional thinking, I research a new topic for a blog post and increase my understanding of how to better parent my kids.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
A book that stands out is, ‘Things Fall Apart’ by Chinua Achebe, which I read in secondary school. The book made a lasting impression on me as a young, white girl growing up in apartheid South Africa. The book was the beginning of my questioning the patriarchal and racist institution that I was born into and brainwashed by. Literature has the amazing capacity to challenge our traditional mindset while developing our empathy and our character.

What are you working on now?
I have just released ‘Crash Test Mummy’ as an audiobook. Being dyslexic and narrating the book was extremely challenging for me. It was excruciatingly hard but interesting to listen back to myself reading the text for editing purposes and identify that my fluency and errors were greatly influenced by how personal challenging the material was for me.

I am now shifting my focus to marketing the book and blogging.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Writing ‘Crash Test Mummy’ has inspired me to develop in so many unexpected ways. I have learned so much through editing, narrating, formatting, and now marketing my book!

Self-promotion does not come easily to me and makes me feel uncomfortable but through websites, such as awesomegang.com, I have found so much support in the publishing and promoting community. I am extremely grateful.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I wish that I had started with the title! However, I only came to the title through the process of writing and editing the book. I have such high expectations of perfection for myself and becoming a confident parent means working daily on being more kind, caring, and compassionate with myself. I delusionally believed that I should have sat down and written ‘Crash Test Mummy’ from start to finish in a perfectly edited format.

My advice to new authors is to be realistic about how difficult the writing process is and perhaps lower your expectations. We are humans, not robots.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
In a world where you can be anything, be kind.

We can choose to be anything in this world. The advice is not referring to one’s occupation but more to the state of being. We can choose to live in a negative state or a positive state, so let’s choose to be positive.

All hardship, and happiness for that matter, is temporary. Life is hard for all humans and the next challenge is guaranteed to be on the way. I’m not sure why we are so surprised when it happens. Our suffering is what connects us. When we have this choice, we must choose to engage our empathy, kindness, and compassion.

What are you reading now?
Living with a challenging teenager who is rarely happy, I am currently researching topics on happiness. It is so difficult to live with an individual who is prone to being oppositional, defiant, and negative, so my reading material is usually based on how to support him to rewire his thinking to be open, warm, vulnerable, appreciative, understanding, and empathic.

This, of course, begins with me being the guinea pig. Once I have internalised and demonstrated living in the teachings of happiness, I can inspire and role model the thinking, feelings, and behaviour to aid in his increased happiness. This process is as difficult as it sounds!

What’s next for you as a writer?
My ambition is to reach millions of parents and positively influence them to be confident parents. On a daily basis, I work with clients to increase their communication and proactive strategies to cope better. Whether that means encouraging cooperation with their kids or helping them as they’re struggling with anxiety, bereavement, and other mental health challenges.

The work I do informs my writing and I hope to consolidate my blog posts into my second book on surviving and thriving as a parent through the teen years.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Untethered Soul by Michael A Singer
The Road Less Travelled by Scott Peck
Keep Calm and Carry On by Everlyn Beilenson

Author Websites and Profiles
Sharon Eshmade Website
Sharon Eshmade Amazon Profile
Sharon Eshmade Author Profile on Smashwords

Sharon Eshmade’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Melrose McFadden 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have committed to writing and publishing one book per month in 2022. At the time of this comment, I have published four books, with another on the way in about 4 weeks and another in drafting stages.
I am writing 2 series at the same time: Wicked Wick Mysteries and Major Bummer Murders. Each book takes 2 months total, and I always have one book from each series in progress at all times.
My schedule is: write 1 month, revise 1 month, publish.
While I am writing a book in one series, I am revising a book in the other series.
It’s intense, but this is my “next chapter” (pun relished), so I’m going at it hard.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is called KICKING THE BOUQUET. It will be released 4/5/22.
It is book 3 in my Wicked Wick Mysteries series, and involves a deluge of tourists and groupies descending on the small town of Fall Haven to attend a celebrity wedding.
All of the books in the Wicked Wick Mysteries series are inspired to an extent by the sense of smell. I am interested in how all of my own core memories are tethered to a scent memory, and how the sense of smell triggers ideas and understanding in a way the senses of sight and sound do not.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
It might be unusual to write a book per month?
It might be more unusual to get up at 5:00 every morning to get my writing done before I go off to my day job (not for long though).
I’m not sure… these things feel pretty usual to me at this point!

What authors, or books have influenced you?
A plethora of cozy mystery authors such as MC Beaton, Vivien Chien, Julie Mulhern.

What are you working on now?
I am working on finishing up the full draft of KICKING THE BOUQUET, along with starting the first draft of what will be book 3 in the Major Bummer Murders series.
I am also heavily into the planning stages for 2023, which will involve two new series.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
GoodReads, BargainBooksy emails, and Instagram. Facebook groups to an extent. I’m just getting started, so still learning.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Just write the book.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The best marketing for the current book is to write the next book.

What are you reading now?
I am reading “Consider This: Moments in My Writing Life after Which Everything Was Different” by Chuck Palahniuk. Excellent guidance, anecdotes, and actionable tips for better writing.

What’s next for you as a writer?
My short-term goal is to retire from my day job in 1 year and make writing books my full-time income.
My long-term goal is to hit 100 books released.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Harry Potter #1.
Whatever the longest Outlander book is.
Something about coconut recipes.

Author Websites and Profiles
Melrose McFadden Website
Melrose McFadden Amazon Profile

Melrose McFadden’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Pinterest Account

Mubarak Sandhu 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Hi !
My name is Mubarak Sandhu. I graduated as a Mechanical Engineer and worked in the same industry for more than 2 years before turning into an entrepreneur. I founded a music record label in the year 2015 and co-founded an event management company in the following year. I have always loved writing, and kept on working as a freelance content writer and at times, ghost writer as well, along with working on the growth of both my companies.

The pandemic stopped all the ongoing work, and hence gave all the time to complete the novel that I started writing in the year 2015. I completed my novel in 2020, and it was published worldwide in July 2021. Looking at a very positive response for the same, the novel was translated in Punjabi language and the Punjabi Edition was published in February 2022. The name of my fiction novel is ‘Boris – The Last Qahn Alive (Unearthing the Spear of Neutrality)’ and this makes me an author of two books, which are available globally via online platforms.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The name of my latest book is ‘Boris – The Last Qahn Alive (Unearthing the Spear of Neutrality)’ which is a fictional work and is inspired by curiosity that everyone has for one thing or the other. It is the curiosity about something in which we are interested, that makes us do wonders. I am always inspired by those people, who do not like to have stagnation in their lives, and are always curious to do something new by utilizing their potential.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Well, I believe that none of my writing habits are unusual.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho is one book that has influenced me far more than any other book till date. And I doubt there can be any other book in future that can influence me as much as The Alchemist did.

What are you working on now?
Currently, I am working on the second part of ‘Boris – The Last Qahn Alive’ as the first part was appreciated and loved by the readers and I am trying my best to provide them with its sequel at the earliest.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I am blessed to have the best of the people around me in the form of my family, friends and relatives. The best method to promote my book has been to share the information about my book with everyone via messaging apps and social media, and everyone has always helped me by sharing and spreading the information further. I have not opted for any kind of sponsored advertisement on social media till now, and have not posted any advertisement on websites as well, but still my book has done considerably well.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
One advice that I always give to the new authors is to keep writing and not to quit at any step. The strength to write is innate and cannot be learnt from anyone else. If you have the strength and caliber to write, do not let it fade-off with time, rather just start writing on your thoughts and be consistent with the same and you will realize that as the days and weeks and months pass, you will have the first draft ready, which can then be checked and proofread again in order to create the final draft.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The best advice that I have ever heard is the one given by my father, which is to be truthful to my own self. We often mould ourselves according to the society in which we live, even if it means losing on our genuity. We must not cheat with our own selves and must always remain genuine and truthful.

What are you reading now?
For now, I am focusing more on writing and am not reading anything for a while.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Recently, I became a verified Goodreads author with a Goodreads badge. Also, my books have been placed in the libraries of many universities. As a writer, this appreciation of work is huge. Next, as a writer, I plan to release the whole series of my novel in next 2 years, and then move on to a new story.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
One would be my own book for sure, as it reminds me of my hard work and patience and potential. Other than this, I would prefer carrying The Alchemist, I Too Had A Love Story and a Punjabi book ‘Raat Baaki Hai’.

Author Websites and Profiles
Mubarak Sandhu Website
Mubarak Sandhu Amazon Profile

Mubarak Sandhu’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Bella King 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have been writing since I was in high school, but this is the first book i actually finished.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The name of my book is ’25 questions from a confused mind’ and It was inspired by questions I was getting from reader of ‘Anabella’s corner: the open floor’. This is a segment in my blog where questions asked by readers via my email address are answered via different write-ups and articles. I realize that most of the questions being asked are questions that a lot of people ask themselves everyday and have once asked themselves at one point in their lives. These questions are life determinators, and the answers goes a long way to help people find their place in this chaotic world. And so I decided to write these book and based it on top 25 of those questions asked.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
It quite funny but when am writing I love to have a lively background. It’s either I am listening to music, podcast, radio or even the TV. It kind of transport me into book. I know a lot of authors prefer serene environment, but I prefer environment with a little bit of noise but good noise.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Definitely Francine rivers. You might laugh and say oh! she’s an oldie, but its just francine river’s books always comes with different angels to them. She is not just a writer, she is an inspiration.

What are you working on now?
I am presently not working on any book as I just finished this book not too long ago, but you can never know, something might just spring up

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I value social media marketing as it directly takes you to your target audience. I just discovered awesome gang and I am loving it so far

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Just keep moving, It doesn’t matter how disappointed you are with the lack of interest or sales, keep going. every one can be an author but your determination and never give-up spirit is what makes you a best selling author.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Someone once told me that you have to do what you have to do until you can do what you want to do. This advice has worked wonders in my life.

What are you reading now?
Kulti by Mariana Zapata. Its not really a new book but it is a book definitely worth reading.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I would love to try writing a series. Writing a series takes a lot of effort as the amount of energy exerted is definitely more than writing a single book, but I would love to try. Maybe in the nearest future, you never know.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Sycamore hills by Francine river, any of Tijan’s and Natasha Anders books

Author Websites and Profiles
Bella King Website
Bella King Amazon Profile
Bella King Author Profile on Smashwords

Bella King’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Riley Gipson 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Hi, I’m an only child that grew up in a small town. So, all I had was my imagination. It never let me down; we went on so many adventures together. I always loved to read and dreamed of writing a novel. Finally, my lifelong dream is a reality! The Flowers of Lemuria is my first novel.

I currently live in Alabama with my husband, two children, and our dogs.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Flowers of Lemuria. The inspiration came from a dream I had of one of the main characters, Nate. He wanted to tell me his story.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I like to write my ideas on colorful index cards and hang them on bulletin boards. Then, I reward myself when I reach certain goals.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I like reading: Becca Fitzpatrick, Cassandra Clare, Diana Gabaldon, V.E. Schwab, Rebecca Wells, Patricia Briggs, Anna Todd, Fannie Flagg, Charlaine Harris, plus a lot of others.

What are you working on now?
My WIP is a paranormal romance about witches.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I am new at this but I have been using Facebook and Amazon. Then I heard about Awesome Gang on Facebook. So, I thought I would try it

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Honestly, Never give up! You have to keep going.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Do it because you love it. No one can read it if you don’t write it.

What are you reading now?
The Wicked Deep By Shea Ernshaw

What’s next for you as a writer?
I am going to keep writing.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
This is a tough one.
1. Outlander
2. Pride And Prejudice
3. The Vampire Lestat
4. Midnight Sun

Author Websites and Profiles
Riley Gipson Amazon Profile

Riley Gipson’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Aniqah Be 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Although I’ve only published one book – the poetry journal “But Are You Really Sorry” so far, I have 9 other writing projects in the works, in varying levels of progress.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Inspired by a conversation with a friend about second chances and forgiveness, I decided to transform the ideas I’ve gathered into “But Are You Really Sorry” – a treasure chest of lessons closure that could be shared with the world. But Are You Really Sorry is a poetry journal – direct, bold poetry cemented together with reflective questions. I was very nervous to publish this book because this direct, concise writing style is not my usual “flowery” style, but I wanted this book to reach not just poetry lovers, but anyone who needs to take a pause and try to look at the world with new lenses.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write best either when I have no distractions or listening to Taylor Swift albums (Taylor’s Version, of course) or watching Twilight in the background!

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Too many to name! Growing up, I was heavily inspired by Maya Angelou, Olive Senior, Thomas Hardy, Derek Walcott, and when I learnt of Insta-poetry, I binge-read Rupi Kaur’s trilogy, Amanda Lovelace and r.h. sin.

What are you working on now?
“But Are You Really Sorry” was about the people and their pains. Her sister book “They Don’t Define You” is about reminding yourself that you are infinite.

I am also working on a literature collection inspired by West Indian Folklore characters, to be announced in late 2022.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Word of mouth! I want you to read my book and let me know what you think!

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t be anxious – you’re already a writer. Be your authentic, genuine self and write what you want!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Sarah Dessen had a quote in her book Just Listen, “Don’t think. Don’t judge. Just listen.”

What are you reading now?
Honey Girl, by Morgan Rogers! And I am in love! It’s one of my favourite books!

What’s next for you as a writer?
I am working on the other 9 books up my sleeve! So much to write, not nearly enough time!

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Honey Girl, The Princess Saves Herself In This One, the Brothers Grim full collection and Poemsia

Author Websites and Profiles
Aniqah Be Website
Aniqah Be Amazon Profile

Aniqah Be’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Brian Lowe 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have been writing since I was in high school, although it wasn’t until well after college that I finally broke through. I have now published ten books under different names, and one is making the rounds.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book, which is in submission, is called “The Ildoni Quest.” It’s my first foray into space opera. In some ways it’s a mash-up of a couple of my earlier short stories, and in some ways it just sort of materialized in my brain over time. I can’t point to any particular inspiration, although I did try to emulate Jack Vance in some of my settings.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Judging from all of the friends I’ve had who’ve tried their hand at writing over the years, my most unusual habit is that I never gave up. Writing is a marathon, not a sprint.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
So many… Asimov, Bradbury, Burroughs, Butcher, Howard, Vance… I think every author you read influences you somehow, whether it’s by showing you who you want to be or by showing you what not to do.

What are you working on now?
I am working on several serials stories through the Kindle Vella app. I’d like to return to short stories for a while, because you can do so many different things in a short time, as opposed to a novel, which requires focus for a longer period.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’ve had the most success with the personal touch, finding readers who share my passions and would like to read more of the stories I like.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
1. Write stories you want to read. If you find your story boring, so will everyone else. 2. Believe in your characters. If you don’t believe they’re real, no one else will. 3. Don’t ever let anyone read your first drafts. It gives you total freedom to screw up, because who’ll know? Success isn’t in the writing; it’s in the editing.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“No one who refused to give up ever failed to get published.”

What are you reading now?
“Around the World in 80 Days,” by Jules Verne. I watched the PBS series and wanted to read the book. Then it’s “The Fated Sky,” by Mary Robinette Kowal.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Write. Promote. Write. Maybe find time to read some more.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
“The Boy Scout Handbook,” obviously. “The Collected Works of Shakespeare,” because they would keep me occupied. And “A Princess of Mars,” by Edgar Rice Burroughs, because I can read that book over and over.

Author Websites and Profiles
Brian Lowe Website
Brian Lowe Amazon Profile

Brian Lowe’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile

T.K. Perry 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a pro bono lawyer, nature nerd, and incompetent photographer (blurry flowers and escaping wildlife are my specialty). I have published three books and written six.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is Delia White: Book Three of The Winged. Though the series was inspired by my fascination with butterflies and their odd biological quirks, this particular book was inspired by mental illness. I wanted to give hope to those struggling, and help them see the good in themselves even when they’re not always able to behave the way they want to.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I stay up absurdly late so I can write in a silent house with no distractions. And then I gasp and giggle to myself in the wee hours, surprised and delighted at the story my brain is churning out.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I love Wilkie Collins’ dramatic plot twists, Janette Rallison’s realistic characters, and Jane Austen’s witty conversations. I strive to imbue my books with the addictive quality of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series; if you stay up all night reading one of my books, I will be ecstatic.

What are you working on now?
I am working on the fourth book in The Winged series. A few more characters need their happily ever after.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m not sure yet; marketing is not my forte. Awesome Gang has certainly been helpful in what little marketing I have done.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Before choosing a traditional publisher, ask yourself: Can you let someone else choose the cover? The title? Or even alter the content? Will you be upset if they don’t make your book available in the newest formats or discontinue the title completely? If later you wish to buy back the rights to your book, will the price be exorbitant?

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“No misfortune is so bad that whining about it won’t make it worse.” ―Jeffrey R. Holland

What are you reading now?
I just finished Seeds of Glory and Ruin by Melanie Cellier and am eager to start the second book in the series.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m hoping book four will complete The Winged series, but since my characters are kind of the boss of me and my stories…we’ll see.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
My scriptures (quadruple combination of course), Stephenie Meyer’s Midnight Sun (the unfinished manuscript rather than the final publication), and Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones.

Author Websites and Profiles
T.K. Perry Website
T.K. Perry Amazon Profile

T.K. Perry’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

John Martin 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am an Australian author who writes comedy with a dash of mystery (or vice-versa). I have written 11 novels and three collections of short humour. My main series (is the Windy Mountain series based in Tasmania. Seven books and growing.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Who Knew Tiger Sharks also eat Apples? Inspired by post-pandemic, pinks toilets and runaway sharks.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
No one must know about the tea cozy I wear on my head when I’m writing.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Joseph Heller, Tom Sharpe, Colin Bateman, Carl Hiassen, Derek Hansen, John Mortimer, Nino Culotti, Roddy Doyle, Elmore Leonard, Jonas Johannson and Fredrik Backman.

What are you working on now?
The Life and Deaths of Billy Gumboots (book seven in the Windy Mountain series.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
promo sites

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Find your own path because we’re all different. Personally, I hate templates and formulas but they work for others.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Don’t take readers out of the bubble you create for them by making silly grammatical or factual errors.

What are you reading now?
The Echo Chamber by John Boyne.

What’s next for you as a writer?
more books. Two or three a year.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Sweet Thursday by John Steinbeck
Catch 22 by Joseph Heller
A Man You Can Bank On by Derek Hanson
The Snapper by Roddy Doyle

Author Websites and Profiles
John Martin Website
John Martin Amazon Profile

Groucho Jones 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a software developer and university researcher. This is my first book, although I have two first drafts [a prequel and a sequel] almost completed. This writing bug has got me bigtime.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
It’s called The Water bear and it’s a sci-fi adventure. It was inspired by climate change, although I didn’t want to write a book about climate. So I wrote a book about martial arts, time-traveling insects, and a human galactic empire.

I was especially inspired by the young people. I was at a climate demonstration in my hometown of Perth, when a teenaged activist stood up and cried “the future is ours!” She was right. The most important job of my generation is to tell them our stories.

So I wrote about how a young person saves the universe, and everything.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write in the nude. No! That was a joke.
I write my drafts entirely in Notepad, without any kind of external aids.
If a Corona No. 3 was good enough for Ernest Hemingway, the least I can do is type in Courier 12pt.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Everything by Iain M Banks.
My favorite author is Don DeLillo.
My sincere thanks to Ann Leckie for inspiration for my ship. The Water Bear would never have existed but for Justice of Toren, and Breq.

What are you working on now?
Yokohama Slim is the prequel to the Water Bear.
It’s the story of the most enigmatic character from the Water Bear.
The Spiral Tribe is the sequel.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I am hopeless! I wish I knew how.
I advertise on Facebook, because my son told me to.
And now I’m here. Big ups to the Awesome Gang!

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Whatever it takes, you just gotta finish that book!
Writing a novel can be a backbreaking task, especially when you have two or three other jobs. It takes years. But it’s worth every keypress. The ability to inhabit a world you created, and share it with others, is beyond priceless. It’s a type of immortality.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Don’t make decisions when you’re angry. Don’t make promises when you’re happy.

What are you reading now?
Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel.

What’s next for you as a writer?
A mathematics textbook. I’m currently doing academic research into blockchain fundamentals: not cryptocurrencies [which I believe are a bubble] but the mathematics, and hopefully inventing a new type of blockchain – a clock-synchronous [or Gödelian] blockchain.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Don DeLillo’s Underworld. My favorite book.
Neil Gaiman’s Sandman graphic novel. [Does the boxed set count as a book?]
Wittgenstein’s Tractatus. I’ve devoted a fair slice of my life to understanding this gnarly knot of philosophical assertions. I could read it forever, and still not get to the bottom of it.

Author Websites and Profiles
Groucho Jones Amazon Profile
Groucho Jones Author Profile on Smashwords

John Moore 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a 54 yr old single father of a beautiful, 23 yr old daughter who recently graduated from college. I’m an Army Veteran, who works as a counselor to children and teens. I currently work with young people in a behavioral health program, which offers counseling and school. Our children have been unsuccessful in the normal school setting, and they attend our Program when recommended by their school district teachers and leaders. I love sports, cooking, reading, and meeting new people. I recently published my first book.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My book is titled Redemption and Renewal. I worked on this book off and on for over 12 years. My inspiration is my life. The book includes short snippets of situations I found myself in as an Army Soldier, father, and tragically prison inmate as my life went awry. After discussing each tragedy, failure, and loss, I discuss how GOD brought me through it all, and how those stumbling blocks and self inflicted wounds, became stepping stones to success, and my greatest tools today.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
When focused on writing, I can’t sleep any more than 3-4 hours before I get back to it. I’m also a late-night writer, preferring to write after midnight.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Wow, so many!! I’ve always loved Patricia Cornwell as my favorite author. A book called Makes Me Wanna Holler by Nathan McCall has always been an inspiration to me. I love reading spiritual books by numerous Christian-based authors, with TD Jakes and Max Lucado being my favorites. I’ve always loved books where people tell their stories, and you feel like you can picture it as you read. As a youngster, I loved Where the Red Fern Grows, and similar titles.

What are you working on now?
My next project will be an inspirational book for young people, focusing on overcoming life’s tragedies and circumstances. I work with young kids and teens, many of who come from homes full of domestic violence, addiction, poverty, and abandonment issues. I want to always inspire hope in those kids because through all of my trials, I never lost hope.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Being new to this, I’ve relied on Facebook, Instagram, and word of mouth.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Being new myself I would simply say never give up! I thought my book idea would never come to fruition after being turned down by several large publishing companies for many years. After numerous disappointments, I put my project on the shelf, but I always picked it back up and tried again until I found a path to success.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Maximize each moment because life is short. Love those you have been blessed to call family and friends and find a reason to smile no matter how bleak things look. Put your trust in the Lord, and allow Him to direct your path.

What are you reading now?
I’m currently reading excerpts and portions of books similar to mine, found on the platforms my book is available on.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I want to focus on writing inspirational material for young people and children. I also want to do more public speaking, which is something I’ve enjoyed for years.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Bible, From Potters Field by Patricia Cornwell, Destiny by TD Jakes, and Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption

Author Websites and Profiles
John Moore Amazon Profile

John Moore’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Karen Baney 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My name is Karen Baney. I am a software engineer by day and historical romance writer by night. I have written seven books and have two more scheduled for release in 2022.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Beauty for Ashes (Desert Manna #1)

Both of the main characters in the novel are faced with the challenge of starting live over. Some aspect of fire has impacted both characters, so Beauty for Ashes seemed like a good fit to tie that theme together. Their lives become something beautiful out of the ashes of their pain.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I am a history fan. I love to research anything and everything about Arizona. I was not born here, but I moved here when I was a young adult and have lived in the state for fifteen years. When I plan a series, I start with the timeframe and location in Arizona. Then I research to find out what was a big deal, like the series I just started is all about the railroads in the late 1880’s. Then I find ways to organically incorporate real facts into the story.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Janette Oke was my favorite author as a teenager. I loved her historical romance books so much that I wrote her a fan letter. I was shocked when I actually received a handwritten card back from her. I think that is what sparked my desire to write later in life.

Some of my favorite fiction authors are: Elizabeth Camden, Ashtyn Newbold, Karen Witemeyer.

My favorite historian: Marshall Trimble

What are you working on now?
I just finished mapping out a five book series called Colter Sons. It’s a spin off from my Prescott Pioneers Series and follows the lives of the five Colter brothers as they make the transition to manhood. Of course they each find love along the way.

The first book is called The Reluctant Cattleman. It is set near Prescott, Arizona, in 1887.

So far it is a blast writing the interaction between five brothers who grew up on a ranch.

All of my previous books are written in the third person. With this series, I’m writing in the first person, which I am LOVING!

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I promote my books on my website, as well as Digital Book Today (DBT). I’ve always gotten good results with DBT. I’m always on the look out for other great websites with large followings at an affordable price.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Keep writing. If you get stuck, start a new book. Write about what interests you. The more you write, the better your writing becomes.

And if you can spend money on only one thing: spend it on a well designed book cover that stands out on Amazon’s product searches. How does this cover look on a phone?

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Do what you love. I’m blessed to be able to work a day job that I thoroughly enjoy as a software engineer. And I’m blessed to be able to write in the evenings and weekends.

What are you reading now?
For my long commute to work, I am listening to Karen Witmeyer’s The Heart’s Charge. I’m also reading two books about the history of Ash Fork, Arizona, and two more books about the railroads in Arizona in the 1880s. Oh, and I’m reading a novel set during WWII.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Finish writing the Colter Sons series. After that, I’m debating on a few one off stories. One might be a prequel to the Colter Sons which deals with their older cousin. I also have a very unique idea for a story of love letters for a couple that is a minor character in Oaks of Justice (Desert Manna #3). Or maybe I’ll finally start writing some of the WWII stories rolling around in my brain.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
My Bible would be first and foremost. Maybe a Thesaurus, assuming I can write books in the sand or on paper or tree bark.

Author Websites and Profiles
Karen Baney Website
Karen Baney Amazon Profile

Karen Baney’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Twitter Account

Grant Moore 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I was born and raised in southwestern Ontario, Canada and I consider London, Ontario to be my hometown.

I grew up in a family of five that included two older sisters. Early life was pretty normal with childhood days filled with school, sports, church, socializing with friends, travel and camping during summer vacations. I was a cub scout and later a sea scout during elementary school.

I have written two (2) books.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is “And they Never Had No Diversity: Confronting the Big Lie”

The first time I encountered the phrase “Diversity is our Strength” I immediately thought that it was a bizarre thing to say. How could “diversity” (i.e., differences) be a strength? If anything, it seemed to me that “similarities” would be a strength since this word implied commonalities, qualities which would make co-operation and collaboration easier. People with things in common would be singing from the same song sheet.

“Diversity is our Strength” also sounded somewhat Orwellian, a fitting phrase in a dystopian account of a future totalitarian state.

So, I decided to examine the historical record and see whether diversity as a “strength” is supported by the evidence.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not really. However, I have a notebook where I record what I consider to be interesting thoughts, sentences or sometimes just phrases from other authors. I often use these as inspiration and I will write a paragraph or two of my own.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Authors would be Ben Shapiro, Jordan Peterson, Robert Reich. I think Thomas Sowell is just terrific.

What are you working on now?
I’m exploring low-content KDP books. I have a few ideas for journals.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m pretty new to this but I think Amazon ads can be effective if designed properly. Having reviews on your Amazon book page is definitely important.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Yes, you must familiarize with Amazon KDP if that’s the platform you use. Make sure you understand the rules, how to develop an effective book title, effective keywords and so on. I’m still trying to get up to speed!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Perseverance.

What are you reading now?
5000 jokes and one-liners. I’m taking a break from serious thought for a week or two.

What’s next for you as a writer?
A revised, updated 2nd edition of my first book to include some new material.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Bible, War and Peace, Ulysses. These are timeless classics and can be read and re-read in case a rescue ship is a long time coming.

Author Websites and Profiles
Grant Moore Website